Gayle Ross (USA First Nation)
Gayle is a descendent of John Ross, Principle Chief of the Cherokee Nation during the infamous ‘Trail of Tears’. Her grandmother, Anne Ross, loved telling stories, especially rabbit trickster tales, and it is from this rich heritage that Gayle’s storytelling springs. She has become one of the best-loved storytellers to emerge from the revival of the art form and has appeared in almost every major storytelling and folk festival in the USA and Canada. Gayle’s repertoire includes trickster tales and haunting Cherokee creation myths. She says she wants to convey the message that people should treat their environment and each other with respect, and many of her stories are intermingled with history about how Native Americans were driven from their land by early settlers. The society for Children’s Literature has given glowing reviews of her first two books, ‘How Rabbit Tricked Otter’ and ‘The Girl who Married the Moon’. Gayle performs in English.
Nazarkul Seidrahmahnov (Kyrgyzstan)
Nazarkul is a Manaschi (teller of the epic stories that surround the great warrior-hero of the Kyrgyz people, Manas). He was born into a shepherding family in 1951 and worked with his father as a shepherd after completing his army service. He had shown an ability for telling tales of Manas from the age of six, having been visited by the spirits of the heroes of the story in a dream. As a result of a storytelling competition in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek, Nazarkul become employed by the Kyrgyz state Concert Hall and has worked there ever since. He has travelled abroad promoting his culture through Manas performances and has won several prizes, including the 1998 International Manaschi competition, when his country celebrated the 1000th anniversary of the founding of Kyrgyzstan by Manas. Nazarkul is married and has four sons, and like all Kyrgyz shepherds, is an accomplished horseman. Nazarkul does not speak English and his performance in Kyrgyz and Russian would need mediating by a UK resident storyteller.
Mimi Barthelmy (Haiti domiciled France)
Mimi was born in Haiti and after studying in France, lived for many years in Latin America, Sri Lanka and North Africa. Firstly becoming involved in theatre, Mimi soon began to tell stories using the Haitian oral tradition, which is in Creole. In her fables she intertwines the two languages, French and Creole, to transmit her experiences and feelings. Since the end of the 1980s Mimi has been composing her own stories and telling them alongside traditional narratives, either on her own, or with musicians, in cultural centres, libraries, prisons and hospitals, She has also performed in numerous festivals in France, Haiti and elsewhere in the ‘francophonic’ world. Mimi presides over many judging panels for storytelling. In 2000 she herself received the prestigious ‘Chevalier de L’Ordre National du Merite’ and in 2001 received the ‘Officier de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres’. Mimi does not speak English and her performance in French and Creole would need mediating by a UK resident storyteller.
Gcina Mhlophe (South Africa)
Gcina Mhlophe is South Africa’s most celebrated oral storyteller. She has worked since the early 1980s, as an actress and director for theatre, film and television, as a writer of plays, poetry and story (which are published extensively) and as a performance poet and storyteller. She is also involved in training and directing storytellers and other narrative based artists.
Gcina passionately combines ancient and contemporary stories, poetry and songs into programmes of great emotional depth. Her performances reflect a profound cultural re-awakening within South Africa and it is thanks largely to her efforts that African Storytelling is now experiencing a huge resurgence in the country.
Gcina tours both within South Africa and internationally. In 2004 alone she was visiting lecturer at University of Cape Town, conducting Storytelling workshops with second year drama students; she visited schools and universities in Brazil on the invitation of the RSA High Commissioner; participated in the hosting of iBbY Congress in South Africa; undertook an Italian tour to promote the 'Story of Mazanendaba' and toured the UK for the promotion of South African literature, as part of the celebration of 'Ten Years of Democracy'.
In 2005 Gcina performed her show 'Touch the Past, Feel the Future' as part of the 'Thrones of Freedom' series of storytelling for adults, at the Barbican Centre in London.
Laura Simms (USA)
Laura Simms is an internationally renowned storyteller and performance artist. Born in Brooklyn, she has been a major force in the renaissance of storytelling as an art in America since 1968. Her stories range from traditional fairytale, myth epic and folklore from Egypt, Persia, South Africa and Tibet, to contemporary true-life tales. Laura’s major performance works have included, ‘The Seven Princesses’, a retelling of Nizami’s stories within story; ‘Women and Wild Animals’ a collage of ancient myth, poetry and fairytale in honour of the earth and the feminine principle; and ‘Persephone Ascending’ a retelling of the myth of Demeter and Persephone with true life stories. Her work is spontaneous poetry and narrative, often accompanied by uncanny vocalisations, gesture and characterisation.
Riveting child and adult audiences alike, Laura has performed extensively in theatres, colleges, festivals and schools throughout the USA, Europe, Taiwan and New Zealand. She is currently involved with long-term projects supporting Romany culture in Romania. Laura is much respected as a scholar of oral traditions and teacher of storytelling. Her audio and audio-visual recordings have gained many awards.
in this task i start looking at different storyteller from around and finding information about them.
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